Remains
The Remains are one of the most striking features in Sundry's landscape. They present a deep mystery: are they natural, or man-made? A feature of Sundry, or drawn from another world? Appearance The Remains take the appearance of thirty pure white pillars, emerging from the ashen plains of Sundry. The tallest of these pillars is approximately 20 metres in height, and the smallest 10 metres. The pillars are arranged in pairs, with each pair curving in towards its partner. Each pair is spaced equally from the next, giving the entire monument the appearance of a giant rib-cage, buried in the ash - hence the fanciful name "the Remains". On first inspection, the "ribs" appear perfectly smooth. Detail does not emerge until one is close enough to touch it. Etched into every surface of the pillars are drawings and writing in an unknown language. These appear to tell an ongoing narrative, perhaps ritualistic in nature. Scenes of warfare, worship, judgement and the practice of magic predominate. However, there are rare everyday depictions, such as ones showing households, farming and cooking. Further inspection with a magnifying glass revealed etchings within these drawings, invisible to the naked eye. Despite its bone-like appearance, the texture of the Remains resembles sandpaper. I theorise that there are more etchings within the smaller ones, beyond the power of my glass. Phenomena The unique phenomenon of the Remains extends in a radius approximately 500 metres from it. The weather here is characterised by what can only be described as "bone rain", as well as extreme changeability. Though the clouds above the Remains are similar to the rest of Sundry, they release an almost constant drizzle of white fragments. The consistency of these fragments varies greatly. Thus far, the following precipitates have been observed: *Fine dust *Round, perfectly smooth pebbles *Slate-like fragments, between 1-5cm in size *Slivers of sharp bone *Irregular fragments, 1-10cm in size *Larger, more regular lumps, 15-20cm in size *Vertebrae *Ribs *Skulls The weather shifts rapidly and unpredictably between these states, with no apparent pattern in chronicity or type. A state can last anywhere from mere minutes, to up to half a day. The rain always consists entirely of one type. Despite the almost constant rainfall, the ground around the Remains is simply the normal ash of Sundry. The bones seem to disappear as soon as they touch the ground, leaving no trace. Field notes Few locations have caused me as much trouble as the blasted weather around the Remains. I have been unable to work out a forecast system with better predictive power than a coin toss. My most recent expedition nearly resulted in my death, when the gentle sprinkle of bone dust suddenly transformed into slivers of bone - like a tempest of needles. I burned through nearly all my aether trying to heal myself as I fled the area, and even then I was barely able to keep ahead of the bleeding. Unfortunately, my lack of climbing ability means I can only inspect the lowest 1.5 metres of the Remains at best. Even in this small sample, I believe that there may be a change in content of the etchings as one proceeds higher. Some method of flight is necessary to continue my research. I shudder to think, however, of being caught in the air when a bone storm begins... The strict demarcation of the bone rain phenomenon suggests that the Remains are derived from another world. However, they are unusual in the way in which they emerge directly from the ash of Sundry. As of yet, I have been unable to determine if the etchings depict only one world, or many. — I. Kallinar Category: Locations Category: Luminous Society